N.C. Bill Targets Data Centers, Fast-Tracks Duke Fossil Fuels
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- North Carolina's SB 730 would bar data center developers from using eminent domain, block local tax incentives, shield ratepayers from data center grid costs, and require site assessments for facilities of 100 megawatts or more.
- The bill's second half would fast-track environmental permits for fossil fuel projects, delay coal plant retirements, and potentially eliminate Duke Energy's goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, reversing nearly 20 years of state climate policy.
- Rep. Dean Arp, a Union County Republican, distributed the 70+-page draft at 9 p.m. the night before committee; the House Energy Policy and Utilities Committee passed it, and the Data Center Coalition — representing Google, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft — then voiced 'concerns' to the Commerce committee.
- Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Guilford County Democrat, called the package 'the terrible combined with the good'; her standalone Ratepayer Protection Act, introduced in April 2025, never made it out of committee.
- Duke Energy announced in March 2026 plans to raise rates between 15 and 18 percent — roughly $30 or more a month — which Arp cited as the bill's core justification, though the source notes fuel and fossil fuel infrastructure costs are largely behind the hikes.
- Amy Adams of the Southeast Climate & Energy Network criticized the bill's water rules as too weak, noting closed-loop cooling still evaporates water and the bill imposes no numeric caps on withdrawals or public disclosure of data center water and energy use.
- Cyndie Roberson of the National Coalition Against Cryptomining urged expanding the bill to explicitly cover cryptomines and lowering the regulated threshold to 50 megawatts, matching North Carolina's definition of a large-load customer.
Why it matters: The bill links bipartisan data center restrictions to fossil fuel giveaways for Duke Energy, potentially reversing nearly 20 years of state climate work. North Carolina ratepayers facing 15-18 percent increases could see their utility's 2050 net-zero goal eliminated while data center water and energy use remains undisclosed to the public.
